Spain: Cementos Cosmos has stated its intention to ask the Castilla León Board for permission to burn tyres in the kiln at its plant in Oral Sarriana. The move has already been met with resistance from the local Bierzo Aire Limpio platform, which has raised concerns about the effects of tyre burning on the local agricultural sector as well as ‘the alarming rates of contamination, cancer and premature deaths in a region closed in by mountains.’
This is despite the plant already having permission to burn paper and plastic waste. The increase in alternative fuels, ideally up to a 70% thermal substitution rate, is intended to reduce the plant’s dependence on fossil fuels.